American Sanctuary
by johnsim
Summary: I made this so that I could explore the American Sanctuary. While Skulduggery Pleasant is known in Ireland, I wanted to see how much influence he has on the outside world/ I also wanted to take the perspective off of Skulduggery while still keeping themes of friendship, trust, betrayal, secrets, etc. By the way, this is my very first piece of Fan Fiction so please be nice :)
1. Chapter 1

**_Introduction_**

Hi all. Just so you know, this is my very first piece of fanfiction. I have always enjoyed Skulduggery Pleasant and been meaning to write some fanfiction for a long time now. While I do enjoy the setting in Ireland and the Irish Sanctuary, I did want to see what the American Sanctuary was like, since I'm in the US, and explore how they would interact with Skulduggery Pleasant. FYI, I have yet to finish the entire series (I just finished book 6) so there may be some conflicting things with the writing. Ideally, this story is supposed to take place after the events of the book 9, but since I haven't finished the series, I don't know the status of other characters, i.e. Tanith, Valkyrie, etc. Once I do finish the series (which I hope is very soon) I'll probably go back through and fix some things, add more detail, or even introduce favorite characters. We'll see. Anyway, I hope you enjoy and feel free to leave a review!

 ** _Chapter 1 -_** ** _Drive-by_**

A young man, in his early 20s, about an average height, with a build of a soldier, walks down the stairs of the private airplane with a large black bag on his back, looks around, and breathes in the atmosphere. He sees a long stretch asphalt for the plane to his left; a small aircraft shelter with cargo boxes placed in various locations a couple of yards in front of him; and a two-way road that's tangent to the backside of the shelter.

"It's actually quite nice here Belle. I don't know why you're complaining."

A woman, also in her early 20s, about the same height, walks out behind him with another black bag and replies, "That's because you haven't been in the city yet John. Just wait until you see all the trash."

As they continue down the stairs, John looks back, and raises an eyebrow, "You do know there's trash back in the States right? DC alone smells like poop sometimes."

"Whatever floats your boat John. Can we just get to our hotel? I can really use some sleep." Belle replied.

"You know, back when I was in the Army, we were told to get in formation right after we got off the plane. We didn't get any sleep until we were all logged in and accounted for. Sometimes it would take 20 minutes, other times it would take hours, which sucked because we were just standing there waiting for the commander to check us in…"

John looks back and sees Belle giving a blank stare.

"Command said to look for a Bentley" John continues, "and a man who calls himself Skulduggery Pleasant."

"What kind of a name is Skulduggery Pleasant?" Belle asks.

"Beats me. Apparently he's the best Ireland has got, so it'll have to do for now." John replies.

Belle and John continue walking until they reach the aircraft shelters and watch as the plane takes off.

Belle turns to John with a questioning look, "Have you heard of this Skulduggery?"

"Of course. He's stopped many criminals from bringing the end of the world. I'm surprised you haven't heard of him. He's definitely a good bet in helping us find Natas."

"I was still in training when all of that happened. It's hard to hear stories about the world ending when someone is yelling at you to do more push-ups."

John looked around the barren airport and saw a small object move closer and closer to them.

"That should be our ride."

"Doesn't he seem to be going really fast?"

"Maybe he's excited to see us. After all, there is no greater country than the United States of America."

As Belle gave a smirk, the car's window rolls down.

"See! He's so excited that he wants to-"

A gun comes out the window, and John pushes Belle to the ground as shots wiz by their heads.

John pulls out his own gun from his holster, a Smith &Wesson M&P 9mm with a black finish retrofitted with the latest tech, and returns fire at the car.

"You alright?" John shouts towards Belle.

"I'm good. Is that Skulduggery?" Belle replies.

"I'm not sure. What does a Bentley look like?" John shouts as he holsters his pistol and grabs his M4 rifle from his bag.

"You don't know what a Bentley looks like? You're a dude!" Belle replies as she pulls her M4 from her bag.

John turns to look at Belle, and with a straight face, replies "I find that comment really sexist and I am offended by it."

Belle rolls her eyes and starts firing her rifle.

"We should really get out of here." Belle shouts as the car comes back around and begins firing again.

"Can't you teleport us out of here? That's your ability right?" John asks.

"I haven't mastered it yet so I can't go to far places." Belle shouts

John finishes a magazine, reloads, and looks around.

"I'll try to find us a ride. Cover me while I move."

"Covering." Belle shouts, as she provides covering fire for John.


	2. Chapter 2

**_Chapter 2 - A Flashy Introduction_**

John runs through a door on the backside of the shelter and finds a truck parked along the side of the road.

"Jack Pot!" John thinks to himself and runs toward the truck. At the truck, he pulls out a knife, pries open the ignition, and pulls out the wires to start the engine. The exposed wires spark, but the engine only sputters like it had never been started before.

"Come on, come on!" John mumbles to himself and continues to touch the wires together.

Frustrated, John hits the steering wheel, gets out of the car, and faces the barrel of a shiny, silver revolver. The revolver isn't the scary part. The scary part is the skeleton holding the revolver. A skeleton all dressed up in a suit with a purple tie, black gloves, and a hat. The epitome of fancy.

"Who are you?!" the skeleton asks roughly.

"Woah…you can talk?" John asks inquisitively.

"Of course I can bloody talk. Answer my question!" the skeleton shouts.

"John Lancelot, American Sanctuary" John replies as he grabs his badge from his belt.

"Ah! You're the Americans I was supposed to meet. Please forgive me." the skeleton says as he puts down his gun.

"Do you Americans always make this much noise whenever you arrive?"

"Not our fault. We were shot at by people in a car."

"Did you provoke the people to shoot at you?"

"What?"

"You know, maybe you gave them a wrong look and they just want to teach you a lesson."

"We were shot at and you think it's our fault?"

"I never said it was you're fault. I'm just asking that maybe they might have felt offended by how you look."

"You calling me ugly?"

"I didn't say you were pretty"

John gave the skeleton a look of disbelief and confusion, only to be broken by the scream of Belle.

"Who would that be?" the skeleton asks.

"That's Belle. We need to save her." John replies as he starts running back towards the shelter with the skeleton following.

"By the way", John asks," Are you Skulduggery?"

"In the flesh", Skulduggery replies, "so to speak."


	3. Chapter 3

**_Chapter 3 - Public Enemy #1_**

When John and Skulduggery go back through the door, they see Belle clutching her, leaning against a crate.

John curses, and begins firing at the car that continues to barrel closer and closer.

"Tend to the girl. I'll take care of this." Skulduggery says.

John immediately stops firing and begins applying bandages to Belle's arm.

"You're going to be alright! Just hang on." John shouts as he tightens the bandage. Belle only responds with a scream.

"We're going to get out of here! Trust me, I won't let anything happen to you." John continues.

Belle looks up eyes watering and John leans in towards her ear.

"I'll always protect you. Just hang on." John whispers.

As John dresses Belle's wound he looks up to see Skulduggery walking towards the car.

Skulduggery places both hands in front of him, palms up towards the sky, and raises them above his head. A bystander might have seen Skulduggery as crazy if it weren't for the fact that the barreling car rose up in the air in motion with Skulduggery's hands. Skulduggery then shoots his hands back down which causes the car to slam back down into the earth in a loud crash.

With no movement coming from the car, John finishes dressing the wound, grabs his rifle, and walks up next to Skulduggery.

"Are they dead?"

"I honestly have no idea."

"Well if it's who I think it is, then you better hope that they are."

John runs up to the wrecked car, rifle ready in his hands. He looks into the front windshield and sees blood running down the glass with a body in both the driver's seat and the passenger's seat. Rifle still up, he shuffles towards the side window and pokes the body with the barrel. No movement. Satisfied, he tugs on one of the arms and looks at the palm of the hand and finds a pentagram scarred onto the flesh.

John sighs and looks up as Skulduggery walks up towards him.

"Well?" Skulduggery asks.

"It's them alright. Followers of Natas. Crazy fanatics." John replies.

"Are these crazy fanatics the people you need help looking for?" Skulduggery asks.

"Indeed. They are wanted for several terrorist attacks on U.S. soil. Recent intelligence says that their leader, Natas, is in Ireland." John replies

"If the leader is here, then the next attack will most likely be here as well. I'll bring this up to my superiors. They will most definitely be interested." Skulduggery says.

"In the meantime, we should start looking for him. If Natas sent these guys to kill us, then he already knows we're here." John replies.

"Tell me, if you're from the American Sanctuary, why didn't you use magic. I'm sure even the Americans are competent enough to have elementals in their ranks." Skulduggery asks.

"Belle is a teleporter, but just a rookie." John replies.

"And you?" Skulduggery presses.

"I can't do magic." John says hesitantly.

"What do you mean?"

"I can't perform magic, nor am I affected by magic. It's strange, but that's how it is."

Skulduggery tilts his head, "That is the first time I have heard of that…very intriguing."

"I've been trying to find out why I'm like this, but so far nothing" John says

"I'm sure you will find the answers. For now, we should get somewhere safe." Skulduggery replies.

John nods his head and walks back toward Belle.


	4. Chapter 4

**_Chapter 4 - (Don't have a title for this)_**

"How ya feeling?"

Belle grunts, "Like I've just been shot."

"Good. Remember that feeling and try to avoid being shot again."

Belle chuckles and tries to get up, but immediately falls back down. John grabs her arm and puts it over his head.

"Where's your car Skulduggery?" John asks.

"Over here. Come on now." Skulduggery replies.

John and Belle follow Skulduggery quietly until Belle asks, "So that's Skulduggery Pleasant?"

"Indeed it is."

"He's a skeleton."

"Yup. I've heard rumors that he can form a face in order to blend in."

"How does he do that?"

"I believe China Sorrows etched in a symbol into his bone."

"Wow, even Skulduggery is tied to the great China Sorrows. Impressive."

"You know China Sorrows?"

"A woman that can make any man fall in love with her is quite the tale you know. Makes me a little jealous."

"Well, it's a good thing your pretty, because you don't have much else going for you."

Belle laughs and together they march onward to Skulduggery's car.

John helps Belle get into the back, and takes the passenger side.

"How long until we get to our hotel?" John asks.

"You're not going there." Skulduggery replies.

"Oh?"

"If Natas knew you would be at this airport, then he most likely knows where you're staying as well. I have a safe house in the city where we can stay."

"Sounds good to me." John replies and goes to sleep.


	5. Chapter 5

**_Chapter 5 - Origins_**

2 hours later, John wakes up. He turns towards Belle, who is also soundly asleep in the back.

"How much further?"

"About 3 more hours. We're off in the country so it'll be a while before we get into Dublin."

John stares out the window, peacefully observing the passing fields.

"How did you get into this?" Skulduggery asks.

"Hmm?" John replies.

"How did you get into the world of magic and all that good stuff? Your ability has something to do with it correct?"

John hesitates and a grim look appears on his face.

"Before I got into the American Sanctuary, I was in the Army. Went through the ROTC program at my university and became an officer at the end of my 4 years."

"Why didn't you stay in?"

John pauses. "A couple of years ago in Iraq, I saw my buddy die in front of my eyes. Not by your typical IED or by gun fire, but by magic. I was ordered to clear a house suspected of hiding insurgents. I sent in a small team to clear it, but no response came. After a few minutes, my buddy and I went to go clear the house ourselves."

John chokes and takes a deep breathe, while Skulduggery sits quietly and waits.

"When we went inside, all we saw was charred bodies of our men circled around a single person. That person saw us, snapped his fingers and summoned a flame in his hand. We froze since we haven't seen anything like it. He then threw the fireball into my buddy and he immediately caught on fire."

John closes his eyes and takes another deep breathe; Skulduggery still quiet.

"The man also threw one at me, but the fireball immediately dissipated and I wasn't harmed. The man was shocked and froze so I took the initiative and shot him. I went to my buddy and put out the flames as fast as I could, but it was too late. He had died even before the flames could completely burn his body."

John tilts his head back and took one last deep breathe.

"What did you do after?" Skulduggery asks.

"I reported to my superiors, but they told me to drop the subject entirely. I obeyed, but only because I didn't want to believe what had happened. I stayed quiet about it until I met Belle."

John turned to look at Belle, who was still asleep, with a face of affection.

"How did you meet Belle?" Skulduggery asks.

"I was walking along the street, when she "bumped" into me." John says while making air quotes with his fingers at the word bumped.

"Oh?" Skulduggery responds.

"Yeah. She tried to pick-pocket me, but when I confronted her she simply disappeared."

"That must have been shocking."

"It was. The image of the man throwing the fireball kept replaying over and over in my head at that moment. Then I heard a big ow around the corner."

"I'm guessing she didn't teleport far."

"You're a good guesser. She teleported straight into a trash can. When I caught up to her, I asked her a bunch of questions. 'How did you do that?', 'Are there more of you out there?' "John laughs, "She had no idea there were others like her."

"What did you do after?" Skulduggery asks.

"I took her in. I taught her how to fight and use a weapon. Taught her everything I knew."

"Why did you take her in?"

"I don't know. Maybe I was missing that companionship with someone else. After my buddy died, I couldn't connect with someone since they had no idea what I went through. We spent months helping each other." John smiles reminiscing.

"How did you get into the American Sanctuary?" Skulduggery inquires.

"Word traveled around the magic world that a teleporter was in the States. We were found by a man called Mr. Bliss and he brought us to the American Sanctuary."

"Ah, Mr. Bliss. Very intriguing man."

"You knew him?"

"Yes I did. Unfortunately he is dead now, but he was very powerful."

"By the time he introduced us, the American Sanctuary had a basic training program for those who wanted to join. Their idea was to turn all their sorcerers into soldiers and ready to fight."

"Did they know about your ability?"

"They had heard rumors about it. The soldier who's invincible to magic. They were skeptical of course so they put it to the test."

"How so?"

"They had a mage push air at me to see if I'd fling backwards."

"Oh Americans and their direct approach."

John chuckles, "When the elders saw that I didn't fly back and instead just stood solid, they immediately began with other tests. When they finally saw that magic didn't affect me, they all agreed to put me into action as soon as possible. Normally, they would put me through a shortened version of basic training, but because I was in the Army, I was able to bypass all of that."

"Is that all?" Skulduggery asks.

"Pretty much", John replies, "I began working on cases and solving crimes. Eventually Belle joined me and we have been together since."

"I'm guessing you have strong feelings for Belle." Skulduggery says

"I trust her with my life and she trusts me with hers. She's the best friend I have ever had." John replies.

"I understand that feeling, trust me I do. It's a good thing to have, but be careful. Your enemies will use that against you." Skulduggery says.

"If they do, then they will die." John replies.

The three of them, Skulduggery, John, and Belle, travel through the country in silence for the rest of the journey.

 _ **Afterword**_

It's the author again! I hope you enjoyed this short story. It may seem a little short and fast paced, but that's because I had to finish this for my college assignment. Regardless, because I'm in school, I'm probably going to take a break until Thanksgiving or Christmas, but we'll see what happens. I do want to go into more detail on what John and Belle are wearing, their actions, and maybe even focus on their relationship and make it as good as Skulduggery's and Valkyrie's. Again, feel free to leave reviews! I'm always looking to improve or even adopt different things. Take care and hopefully I'll see you in the winter!


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